“Black Cat is a slow-paced track that immediately gets under your skin and features perfectly haunting vocals. Like the soundtrack to an opium-induced trip through a kaleidoscope… heavy, ethereally weird beauty and slightly tongue-in-cheek qualities that have become the band’s hallmark” – The Big Takeover Magazine

“This is shady grifter rock for those not afraid to dabble in dark timeless melancholy… Thoughtful and immersive, engulfing the listener and triggering one’s deep and dark imagination in the same way that Julie Cruise did once upon a time and also the soundtracks for various other David Lynch films” – The Record Stache

“By evoking everything from the original underground of the past when alt was post-modern, 68creep give a modern masterpiece filled to the brim with grim and grime laced with harmonic bliss and desirable attitude in the 3:39 known as Black Cat” – Jammerzine

It says a lot about an artist when those trying to catch their essence in a witty sound bite move from being concise and descriptive into the realm of high literary art. Any band that can be metaphorically described as sounding like “murder at midnight” and “beautiful melodies telling me terrible things” makes for a tantalising proposition. NYC’s 68creep are indeed that. Inspired by numerous artists, including PJ Harvey, Dead Weather, Beach House, The Misfits, Black Sabbath, Alice Cooper and The Cramps, they offer a fusion of dark emotions, doom-laden pop, acid-laced musical retro-mania, and the dark underbelly of the hippy dream turned bad.

‘Black Cat’ is inspired by lack of love and the persistence of hope and humor, ringing through in lyrics like “I wanna make you mine. You lovely waste of time”.

The spirit of filmmaker and musician David Lynch seems to hover above everything the band does like a mercurial patron and spiritual advisor. “What would David do?” has even become the band mantra for swerving creative blocks, ensuring that the music brims with the same essence as one of his films.

68creep’s backstory even starts with a very Lynchian starting point, with John McRandle and Patrick Casey meeting at a New York City advertising agency, where they were marketing drugs designed to combat schizophrenia. The Kiss/Kill/Repeat label gave the band the backing and impetus they needed and very soon they were pushing their heavy, surreal, carny, creepcore to like-minded music fans.

Adding to 68creep’s intense sound is Colyn Hunt on bass and Kimberly Seewald on vocals. “Kim’s pretty soft-spoken; well, except when she laughs,” says Patrick Casey. “But once she opens her mouth to sing, she can pin you up against a wall.” She’s more than pure power though. “Kim’s got versatile skills. Our softer, more melodic, melancholy songs really show that off.”

Following up their debut EP ‘The Rumors Are True’ is the perfect storm coming in the forthcoming long-play album ‘Goodnight, Sweet Betty’, the title of which derives from a quote from the David Lynch film ‘Mulholland Drive’. This LP promises more of the same dark and heavy, ethereal weird beauty and slightly tongue in cheek qualities that have become the band’s hallmark.

At the heart of this release is John McRandle’s big, earthmoving baritone guitar. It can churn out a song’s sludgy riff, or sparsely sprinkle it with a chilly melody. Drummer Patrick Casey leans into his work, riding his toms taiko style, while giving even the heaviest grooves a good hard swing. Colyn Hunt anchors the foundation with deep-in-the-pocket grooves and a taste for airy, melodic runs. Riding on top of this swell is Kimberly Seewald’s vocals. Together, 68creep wails and soars, hitting the listener hard, but every so often, also comfort and console.

“This album wouldn’t have sounded like this if it weren’t written in New York. We are always talking about how a relationship with New York is love/hate. And it’s a real relationship. This environment is gonna seep into your songs, like an ex lover might slip into a dream. Whether you want them there or not,” says Casey. “To me, New York seems to be constantly saying, ‘I’m gonna hook you up with the most talented, mind-blowing people on the planet. But don’t look for a happy ending here’…”

Who knows? Perhaps somewhere out there, David Lynch is even listening. ‘Goodnight, Sweet Betty’ will be released on September 22 and is already available for pre-order via 68creep’s Bandcamp.